22 July 2011

Fascism. Journal of Comparative Fascist Studies seeks articles by both seasoned researchers and postgraduates exploring the phenomenon of fascism in a comparative context and focusing, but not limiting, on topics such as:

- the uniqueness and generic aspects of fascism- patterns in the causal aspects/genesis of various fascisms in political, economic, social, historical, and psychological factors- their expression in art, culture, ritual and propaganda- elements of continuity between interwar and postwar fascisms- fascisms in relation to national and cultural crisis, revolution, modernity/modernism, political religion, totalitarianism, capitalism, communism, extremism, charismatic dictatorship, patriarchy, terrorism, fundamentalism- other phenomena related to the rise of political and social extremism

SUBMISSION DEADLINE for the first issue in April 2012 is November 1st, 2011.

SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS can be found in the ‘Instructions for Authors’ at the Fascism website (www.brill.nl/fascism). Each article should be submitted online, is written in English, consists of a maximum of 8500 words and includes an abstract and keywords.

If you have any questions please contact the managing editor at fascismjournal@niod.knaw.nl

PrerequisitesA strong interest in contemporary Ukrainian affairs. Good English language knowledge.Course OrganizationThe course is oriented towards advanced under-graduate students (2nd year and above), although graduate, post-graduate, and doctoral-level students are also encouraged to apply. The course focuses on political and social issues, and is particularly suitable for students in the social sciences, humanities, and law, but open to all faculties. After completion of the course, students will be issued NaUKMA transcripts. The course combines in-class sessions (lectures and seminars, interactive presentations with discussion highly encouraged), guest visits, joint discussions with local NaUKMA students, and tours to interesting sites in and around Kyiv.

Course Aims and ContentsThe objective of this English-language (late) summer school is to introduce students to the transformations that took place in Ukraine before and after the 2004 Orange Revolution from various perspectives: political, economic, social, and cultural. Additionally the course provides participants with a general idea of "post-Soviet society," its main features and development dynamics, thus establishing a framework for understanding other societies of this type.The teaching will involve English-speaking political scientists, historians, economists, culturologists, and sociologists, mainly from the staff of the Mohyla Academy. The course will include lectures and workshops, in one way or another, related to the following topics:- Ukraine between Democracy and Authoritarianism- Ukraine's Path to and after the Orange Revolution- Ukraine and Its Relationship to the European Union- Ukraine and Its Relationship to Russia- Ukraine's Transformation in Comparative Perspective- Ukraine's Economy Before and After the World Financial Crisis- Ukraine's Coming to Term with Its Past- Ukraine's Post-Soviet Cultural Life- Ukraine's Social Change and Modernization Since 1991- Ukraine and the Question of Gender Equality- Ukraine and the Challenge of Ecological Change- Ukraine After Chernobyland, possibly, other similar topics.

In case of full attendance of these lectures/seminars and satisfactory presentations, students may obtain 2.5 ECTS points.

Students will attend ca. 3 classes per work day, and have organized trips within and outside Kyiv during the weekend. They will meet lecturers from the Mohyla Academy, and be assigned one of our Department for Foreign Cooperation collaborators as permanent supervisor. The Department for Foreign Cooperation will take responsibility for the two weeks' organization.

Two classes of survival Ukrainian are included into the program and in the below program fee.

Facultative Ukrainian-Language Course WorkAdditionally, in parallel to the program, the students will be offered the opportunity to take a non-obligatory intensive course of Ukrainian, 1,5 ECTS each, one-two "pairs" per work day each, i.e. 14 x 2 = 28 hours. One course will be offered for those with no previous knowledge of a Slavic language, and one course for those with previous knowledge of a Slavic language (Polish, Slovak, Bulgarian, Serbian, Russian...). Additional fees for these language courses will be charged (170-245 Euro depending on the number of the students registered). Language classes will not overlap with the program classes.

Course Instructor(s)As the school is designed as a mixture of different types of activities there will be two course supervisors who will ensure academic integrity and will take care of course logistics. External speakers, invited faculty experts etc. will be involved in course teaching as appropriate. For details please refer to the preliminary program to be published in due time.

The basic fee for the course is 462 Euro (please, note that a wrong earlier announcement stated 462 USD which was a type error).This basic fee of 462 Euro includes tuition and selected cultural events only.There may be additional, facultative cultural events suggested by the school to the students. Attendance of these non-obligatory events will be for moderate, separate fees.Please, note that courses of Ukrainian language, international airfare, transfers, medical insurance, accommodation, meals, public transportation and other private expenditures are not covered by the basic fee.

SCHOLARSHIPS

German students may want to check the DAAD (German Academic Exchange Service) specialized stipend programme for the summer school attendance (1237 Euro per student) : http://www.daad.de/ausland/foerderungsmoeglichkeiten/ausschreibungen/16449.de.htmlPlease, note that you have to apply separately to the DAAD for this scholarship, before 1 June 2011. Note also that the DAAD has, unfortunately, only a limited amount of scholarships available for German students. Students who are able to cover their expenses and fees with other than DAAD funding or by themselves should indicate so in their application/s to the school, and DAAD.

GENERAL LOGISTICS

Arrival in KyivStudents are expected to arrive in Kyiv on Sunday, September 18. Pick-up service from Kyiv-Boryspil International Airport can be arranged by the school organizers upon request by the school organizers for additional payment.

Departure is Sunday, October 2. Transportation to the airport can be arranged upon request by the school organizers for additional payment.

PlaceThe National University of “Kyiv – Mohyla Academy” (NaUKMA) is located in the historic Podil neighbourhood of Kyiv. The campus is located on 3 city blocks stretching from Kontraktova Square to the Dnipro River.

The campus of NaUKMA is composed of a number of buildings, but most of the in-class sessions of the course will be held in the Department for Foreign Cooperation (Voloska vul. 8/5, Building 5, Auditorium 5-313). This location is a walking distance from all student apartments.

Please visit www.ukma.kiev.ua for more information about the University.

AccommodationThree types of accommodation will be suggested to the summer school students by the school organizers.• NaUKMA student hostel. The hostel is the least costly option, offers basic accommodation, and is located on Kharkivska street, on Kyiv's left bank. It takes about 35 minutes by public transport to get to NaUKMA from the hostel. The hostel is divided into accommodation units with 7 simple rooms, mostly double, in each unit. The rooms of one unit share a common kitchen and 2 bathrooms. Dorm rooms are furnished with a desk, chairs, and beds. Linens are provided. The dormitory offers laundry facilities as well. Summer school students can request single or double (a room shared with another school student) accommodation. Single accommodation – 500 UAH for entire school duration (2 weeks); double accommodation – 250 UAH for entire school duration (2 weeks);• NaUKMA guest house. The official guest house is located inside the university campus, in the historical Podil region. NaUKMA Department for Foreign Cooperation can be reached in 2-3 minutes. The guest house has single or double rooms, every room has a bathroom attached (but there is no kitchen). Linens are provided. Summer school students can request single or double (shared with another school student) accommodation. Single accommodation – 500 UAH per day; double accommodation (one room shared by two students) – 250 UAH per day.• Private apartment. Apartments are usually located in walking (up to 15 minutes) distance from the University and from each other. The apartments have typically 2 bedrooms, a kitchen, a bathroom and a toilet. All apartments are furnished, and include kitchen supplies, towels, utilities, and a local telephone (outgoing international calls not allowed). It is recommended for two school participant to share one apartment. Apartments may cost (if to be shared by two participants!) – around 250-300 UAH per night per person, depending on the quality of the apartment.• If preferred, you can also arrange accommodation in Kyiv by yourself. We would recommend to rent either in the Podil district or close to it, in order to avoid using public transportation during rush hours.

Some of the above rents in UAH proceed from the UAH/USD/EUR exchange rate as of 25 March 2011, and may change in the case of currency rate developments, until September 2011.

MealsStudents are be responsible for their own meals.They will be able to use the NaUKMA students canteen (25-30 UAH for lunch), the nearest Trapezna Cafeteria, located in one of the University’s buildings (up to 50 UAH for lunches) and many other options available in the University neighborhood.A list of restaurants/cafes in Kyiv can be found on http://www.restaurant.ua/kiev/restoran/

Miscellaneous:Applicants are asked to inform themselves extensively about living and travelling for foreigners in Ukraine. We would like to especially alert you to the danger of petty crime in Kyiv's public transportation, the presence of HIV/AIDS in Ukraine, and the necessity to boil water that you want to use for drinking or preparing meals. Yet, there are many other things to observe. You can find in the relevant information in the major travel guides, or/and at your Kyiv embassy's website.

APPLICATION PROCEDURE

Those interested in participation should submit a competed application form (http://dfc.ukma.kiev.ua/doc2/application_indian_summer_course_NaUKMA_2011.doc ) and other required documents (listed in the application form) by 1 June 2011 to the following e-mail address: larch@ukma.kiev.ua. Students will be notified of participant selection results by 10 June, and should confirm their participation by 18 June 2011. Course fee payments are due by 19 August 2011 (payment details will be provided upon receipt of confirmation of participation in the course).

Please, note that those interested in the DAAD stipend (http://www.daad.de/ausland/foerderungsmoeglichkeiten/ausschreibungen/16449.de.html ) should apply for it separately directly to the DAAD.

All questions about the course and the application procedure should be addressed to: Larysa Chovnyuk, larch@ukma.kiev.ua, tel. +38 044 425 77 70.

NOTE: Announcing your interest in this summer school at the Facebook site is insufficient. You have to submit the above application to NaUKMA, and, perhaps, also apply for a DAAD stipend. See the above DAAD website for details.

20 May 2011

The newly published issue of Nationalities Papers: The Journal of Nationalism and Ethnicity (Vol. 39, No. 3, 2011) features a Special Section: Ukrainians, Jews and the Holocaust. Three brilliant articles by leading scholars in the field -

The Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists, or OUN, came into being in 1929 as an “integral nationalist” movement that set itself the goal of driving Polish landowners and officials out of eastern Galicia and Volhynia, joining hands with Ukrainians in other countries, and establishing an independent state. The OUN defined Jews, along with Russians and Poles, as aliens and enemies. There was no need, wrote an OUN ideologist in 1929, to list all the injuries that Jews caused Ukrainians. “In addition to a number of external enemies Ukraine also has an internal enemy … Jewry and its negative consequences for our liberation http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifcause can be liquidated only by an organized collective effort”. The article examines archival documents, publications by OUN members, and recent scholarly literature to trace the evolution of OUN thinking about Jews from 1929 through the war years, when the German occupation of Ukraine gave the OUN an opportunity to stage pogroms and persecute Jews, and the prime minister of the state that the OUN proclaimed wrote that he supported “the destruction of the Jews and the expedience of bringing German methods of exterminating Jewry to Ukraine”.

At the core of the debate in Ukraine about Babi Yar lies the Holocaust. Between 1941 and 1943 1.5 million Jews perished in Ukraine, yet a full understanding of that tragedy has been suppressed consistently by ideologies and interpretations of history that minimize or ignore this tragedy. For Soviet ideologues, admitting to the existence of the Holocaust would have been against the tenet of a “Soviet people” and the aggressive strategy of eliminating national and religious identities. A similar logic of oneness is being applied now in the ideological formation of an independent Ukraine. However, rather than one Soviet people, now there is one Ukrainian people under which numerous historical tragedies are being subsumed, and the unique national tragedies of other peoples on the territory of Ukraine, such as the massive destruction of Jews, is again being suppressed. According to this political idea assiduously advocated most recently during the Yushchenko presidency, the twentieth century in Ukraine was a battle for liberation. Within this new, exclusive history, the Holocaust, again, has found no real place. The author reviews the complicated history regarding the memorialization of the Jewish tragedy in Babi Yar through three broad chronological periods: 1943-1960, 1961-1991, and 1992-2009.

4 May 2011

I will guest edit a special double issue of the journal Patterns of Prejudice on the role of music in the demonization of the Other, to be published at the beginning of 2013.

Since the end of the nineteenth century, music has played an increasingly prominent role in constructing national identities and promoting various types of nationalist projects. Some of these projects turned to (largely re-invented) musical folk traditions as evidence of the rootedness and longevity of their nations. Later, music was often employed to show the grandeur of nation-states and empires. With the rise of illiberal nationalisms, many composers and performers contributed to the formation of ‘closed’, exclusivist concepts of national identity.

However, no matter how deeply involved particular composers or musicians might be in promoting illiberal social, cultural or political projects, music cannot, as such, be regarded as nationalist, racist or xenophobic. The racist or nationalist associations of a piece of music might arise from the lyrics that accompany it, but often are constructed from without, from the larger social, historical, political or cultural context. For example, the reasons why ‘Giovinezza’ is banned in Italy or Richard Wagner’s Der Ring des Nibelungen is rarely heard in Israel do not have much to do with the music itself, but rather with the memories these works evoke, the historical or cultural baggage they bring with them. The majority of punk fans don’t listen to the songs of Skrewdriver or Macht und Ehre, not because they are ‘bad’ punk rock but because the band members are racist.

This special issue will feature original research articles focusing on historical and contemporary instances of intersection of music and nationalism. We are particularly interested in contributions that address the following issues:

* musical works as lieux de memoires* appropriation of folk music in nationalist narratives* music and racial or ethnic conflict* the role of music in the demonization or stigmatization of ethnic, racial or national communities* xenophobic tendencies in contemporary musical genres such as Punk, Industrial, Hip-Hop, Neo-Folk, Dark Ambient, Black Metal and others* the use of music by historical and contemporary far right movements, organizations and parties

Proposals for articles (500 words) addressing these and related issues should be submitted by e-mail before 15 June 2011. All final contributions must be the original work of the author/s; they will be subject to peer review and the editors’ decisions will be final. Please send proposals to Anton Shekhovtsov (anton.shekhovtsov@gmail.com) and Barbara Rosenbaum (b.rosenbaum@dsl.pipex.com).

19 April 2011

An International ConferenceThursday, 22 Sept. and Friday 23 Sept. 2011, Park Campus, University of Northampton

The Radicalism and New Media research group at the University of Northampton will host a two-day international conference called "Populist Racism in Britain and Europe since 1945". Following an established tradition, this conference will bring together scholars, practitioners and third sector professionals, engaged in ground-breaking research on the causes, nature and effect of populist racism, or who are seeking to provide a practical response to a vast array of concerns associated with its impact. With the rapid rise of populist racism penetrating the political, social, and cultural spheres, as well as the mass media, a burst of studies on this cannot have come at a more apposite time. However, the scholarly works in general – to practitioners’ and officials’ disappointment – often fall behind the developmental trajectories of populist racism, sometimes due to the lag-time between writing and actual print publication of innovative research. The agenda behind the International Conference "Populist Racism in Britain and Europe since 1945" is exactly to reduce the lag time between undertaking research and disseminating important findings, so these have a timely impact on practice. At the same time scholars of populist racism will have an opportunity to engage in a much needed, dynamic dialogue with practitioners, which will allow academics align their research priorities. The conference will therefore provide a combination of theoretical and empirical studies on populist racism by established and young scholars, as well as papers and reports from practitioners and civil servants.

Day 2: Populist Racism in BritainDay 2 of the conference will focus on populist racism in Britain and will be case-oriented.Themes:– Comparative and/or historical analysis of British racist populism– Prejudice against Travellers, immigrants and asylum-seekers– The ever-changing face of anti-Semitism– Religion is the new colour? The rise of Islamophobia– Racism in the mass media, and cultural production– Populist racism and crime– English Defence League: from anti-extremist protests to a racist street army– British National Party: ‘common sense’, ‘racial realism’, or plain racism?– ‘Traditional’ vs. ‘non-traditional’ immigrants: tensions among minority groups

Keynote addresses: Dr Hans-Georg Betz and others to be confirmed.

Conference cost is £65 for 1 day, £120 for both, including conference dinner in town on 22 September.

To participate, please submit an abstract of no more than 200 words by 30 June 2011 to conference organisers:

The following historic letter, signed by over 100 scholars from around the world, many of them leaders in their fields, is being circulated across Europe and through international scholarly associations and listservs. It will no doubt include many more scholars and their names will be added as they are submitted.

Tuesday, April 12, 2011

The Ukrainian Canadian Civil Liberties Association and the Ukrainian Canadian Congress have been campaigning against the plans of the Canadian Museum for Human Rights in Winnipeg to mount a permanent Holocaust gallery. The UCCLA has mailed out a postcard across Canada that reproduces the cover of an edition of George Orwell’s Animal Farm and implies that supporters of a Holocaust gallery are pigs. For its part, the UCC, which, in contrast to the UCCLA, is an elected body that represents major Ukrainian Canadian organizations, has complained that the planned Holocaust exhibit is “unacceptable” and has asked the Museum to provide the Holodomor, or Ukrainian famine of 1932-33, “no less coverage… than the Holocaust.”

We, the signatories to this letter, have all studied various aspects of genocide, fascism, antisemitism, Stalinism, war criminality, the Holodomor, and the Holocaust. We unequivocally recognize that the violence and oppression that Ukraine has experienced during its multi-totalitarian past ought to be remembered and commemorated in a Canadian museum devoted to the history and abuse of human rights. What we object to is the dishonest manner in which the UCCLA and UCC have distorted historical accounts of the Holodomor while at the same time refusing to acknowledge the Ukrainian nationalist movement’s role in the Holocaust.

The Ukrainian famine, which constitutes one of Stalin’s great crimes and one of Europe’s most devastating tragedies, deserves a place in any venue dedicated to commemorating and understanding the violation of human rights. Yet the way the UCC treats the Holodomor is problematic. All demographic studies place the number of famine deaths in Soviet Ukraine in the range of 2.6 to 3.9 million. This is, in itself, a grievous toll. Nonetheless, the UCC has, at times, inflated the number of victims to seven or even ten million. The implication is obvious: seven or ten million is more than six million; the Holodomor deserves more attention than the Holocaust. Such a manipulative attempt to exploit human suffering is reprehensible and should not be acceptable to the Canadian public.

We are also troubled by the attitude of the UCCLA and UCC toward the OUN, the UPA, and the 14th Grenadier Division of the Waffen SS ‘Galicia’ (1st Ukrainian). OUN stands for the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists. UPA is the Ukrainian abbreviation for the Ukrainian Insurgent Army, the armed branch of the OUN. The Galicia Division, a military unit that was primarily involved in counterinsurgency activities, was established by the Germans in 1943. Tens of thousands of Ukrainians who belonged to these formations perished while resisting the ruthless imposition of Soviet power at the end of the war. Today many Ukrainians revere the members of these organizations as the champions of an oppressed people. In February 2010, the UCC called on the Canadian government “to make changes to Canada’s War Veterans Allowance Act by expanding eligibility to include designated resistance groups such as OUN-UPA.” Last Remembrance Day, the UCC asked Ukrainian Canadians to honour veterans who belonged to OUN, UPA, and the Galicia Division.

In their calls to honour the members of these organizations as veterans, what the UCCLA and the UCC do not fully acknowledge is that all three groups have been implicated in violence against civilians on a massive scale. Significant historical research indicates the political responsibility of the OUN in anti-Jewish violence in the summer of 1941. Emerging research also demonstrates that many former policemen who aided the Nazis in genocidal operations subsequently joined the UPA, created in early 1943. Moreover, the UPA murdered tens of thousands of civilian Poles in the western province of Volhynia to undercut the ability of postwar Poland to make claims on the area. The Galicia Division was also involved in anti-civilian military actions, although mainly outside of Ukraine.

By pointing out the historical record of the OUN, UPA, and the Galicia Division, we do not mean to suggest some sort of collective responsibility for genocide on the part of all the men and women who served in them, and certainly not on the part of all Ukrainians. Nevertheless, in an age when the mass murder of civilians is regarded as a crime against humanity, the mixed record of these organizations has to be openly debated, particularly when the significance of the Holocaust is being questioned in a public campaign pertaining to a fair representation of the history of human rights.

We therefore assert that since the UCCLA and UCC have not understood that confronting the historical record openly and honestly is preferable to manipulative falsehood, have engaged in a competition of suffering, and have failed to acknowledge both the vices and the virtues of the nationalist movement, they ought to stay out of a debate about the Canadian Museum of Human Rights.

Signatories:

Tarik Cyril Amar, Assistant Professor of History, Columbia University

Christine Achinger, Assistant Professor of German Studies, University of WarwickAlexander Babyonyshev, Davis Center, Harvard University

11 April 2011

Goal and target groupFascism is an internationally oriented English-language Open Access e-journal that seeks to provide the burgeoning international field of research into fascism and extremism with a forum that is not restricted by national borders, nor by expertise. It is directed towards a wide audience of interested fellow specialists, geared towards informing policy-makers and social workers, and to engage students. Fascism is peer reviewed.

FrequencyFascism will be published twice a year, in March and September. The first issue will be published in September 2011. Each issue will contain 4 to 5 articles and consists of approximately 125 pages.

Information for authorsArticle, abstract and keywordsEach article is written in English, consists of approximately 8000 words and should include an abstract and keywords. Abstracts should be no more than 150 words, written in English, which clearly defines the article’s thesis. Keywords are a list of three to eight words that classify the article. Keywords can include names of historical actors, places, sources used, concepts, or any other term that would be useful in electronic searches for the article.

CopyrightThe copyright of the articles will stay with the author(s). Authors are recommend to use the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported License. With this license the licensor (the author(s)) ‘permits others to copy, distribute, display and perform the work, as well as make derivative works based on it’, except for commercial use. The rights to the title of the journal will equally be shared by the NIOD and Brill.

Automated submissionThe publisher deploys the online article submission system Editorial Manager (Aries Systems Corporation, USA). This system allows candidate authors to submit their article to the journal, and manages all subsequent steps like selection, peer review, adjustments and formal acceptance. The system reports on progress of each step of the article flow to the authors, the managing editor and the production editor. More information on how to submit your contribution will follow.